No Surprise
by Crushed Seraphim
Summary: Stefan & Elena Fanfic based on Daughtry's song "No Surprise"


**No Surprise**

I practised this for hours, gone round and round;

And now I think that I got it all down

And as I say it louder, I love how it sounds,

Cause I'm not taking the easy way out!

I kept repeating the words I planned to say to him the minute he stepped into the house. I knew it had to be done, I had to end it—before we ended up in more pain; it was inevitable. Our relationship was doomed from the very start; we both loved each other and I knew we always would, but it wasn't the way it used to be between us. When we started dating, we were each other's confidante. We understood each other better than we understood ourselves; now, I came to realize he wasn't the man I fell in love with. He was wearing a mask, stuck in an endless role-play, pretending to be the person he used to be for fear of losing me. He could see that with each passing day, I would chip away at that mask, and what I saw terrified me. He was deceitful, easily angered, and now surpassed his older brother as the King of Lies (something I used to think was impossible, yet not an achievement he should ever be proud of).

In that past few months, I've been lied to so many times that I lost count. If I were to record all his reasons in a book, I'd most likely see that he used every single possible excuse out there. The biggest problem is that he made it all believable. He lied to my face—he lied to himself—and made me want to believe his lies; I had, at one point, started to doubt myself—I'd think, "I'm being paranoid. He must be telling the truth...he loves me; he couldn't possible lie to me. He would never betray my trust." But, at one point or another, the truth surfaces and one is forced to leave the ignorance behind and face the hurt that reality brings.

As I left the bedroom to come downstairs, I heard the lock snap open and the door opening and then closing behind. Stefan was home and it was time to face the music. No more hiding behind half-truths or lies. Tonight, everything that needed to be said was going to be said—I hoped I could avoid a fight and end on good terms, but judging by the secret I had, I knew there was a high chance there would be a mess to clean up afterwards.

"Hello, beautiful. I missed you today." He smiled and came towards me, leaning in to give me a kiss. I saw the pain mar his features when I moved away, rejecting his affection.

"Hey." I said, with a grimace. Swallowing, I forced myself to remember why this needed to be done. I couldn't put this off any longer.

"What's wrong?" He asked confused and worried.

"Look Stefan, we need to talk. Let's go sit down on the couch. We'll at least be a little more comfortable, especially considering it might take a while to discuss everything." I forced a smile, walked around him and headed for the living room couch. I grabbed the mug of tea I made a few minutes earlier and took a sip—it was the perfect temperature to drink and helped warm my cold hands. Stefan had followed behind me but was moving slower than usual, no doubt trying to figure out why I was acting so out of character.

"Elena, what's going on? I just…I can't understand what has changed. This morning, you looked happy—you were smiling—and now, you look depressed, acting as if someone died. Is Jeremy okay? Has something happened to Matt or any of the others?"

Not wrapping this in ribbons,

Shouldn't have to give a reason why…

"Everyone's fine." It was so like him to jump to conclusions and think of the worst—in some ways, he and I were one and the same… "It's our relationship we need to talk about…" I paused, taking a deep breath and jumped into the deep end. "I know you've been lying to me, Stefan. You told me, no, you _swore_ to me, that you were back on the animal diet. Well, guess what? Damon found the empty blood bags in the basement, Monday, and called me to let me know as soon as he made the discovery. Why didn't you tell me, Stefan? I would have helped you! I wanted to help you because I care about you!" I squeezed my eyes shut and bit the inside of my cheek to stop the tears from coming.

He had the decency to look ashamed for a quick moment, before it was replaced with anger. "What? So now you and Damon are best buddies? Are you cheating on me? With _my brother _of all people? After all I told you, you of all people should know why I wouldn't even be able to even contemplate that idea!"

"What? NO! Since when has this become about Damon and I? You know him and I care about each other but that is the extent of it!" _When will I stop lying to myself…? _I frowned. "Besides, is it so hard to believe the two of us want what's best for you? We may not agree on what that is and how we should go about achieving it, but we _both_ care about _you_!" I said, frustrated. Those two needed to solve whatever shit they had going on and get over it—they were brothers for God's sake! They needed to act like it. You'd think 150 years is enough to get over a grudge…Clearly, _that_ is not the case with the stubborn Salvatore men.

It came out like a river, once I let it out  
When I thought that I wouldn't know how  
Held onto it forever, just pushing it down  
It felt so good to let go of it now  
Not wrapping this in ribbons  
Shouldn't have to give a reason why

"Whatever. And you say you want to _help_ me? What would you know about what being a vampire is like? You can't _even come close_ to understanding what it's like being me, Elena! _Every time_ I'm near you," he enunciated, "or near any other human for that matter, I want to tear out your jugular! My love for you is the only thing holding me together, right now! It's the only thing I have left that I know, without a doubt, I can fall back on when everything else is falling to pieces around me." He was breaking my heart with each word, worsening my already unbearable guilt, and yet I couldn't back down. We could never be the way we once were and it was best to go our own separate ways. He deserved to be happy, but he would never achieve it if he stayed with me.

In the blink of an eye, Stefan was on the other side of the room, drinking from his brother's endless supply of alcohol.

"Look, Stefan. I know what you're going through is tough—"

"Tough? That's the understatement of the _century_, Elena! Tough is pulling out a wooden stake from my abdomen. This—this is _excruciating_. Every time I step on school grounds, I feel the need to go on a killing rampage. No human would be left alive, and I bet not even an entire school of around a thousand people would satiate my blood lust." He growled between clenched teeth, the veins underneath his eyes pulsing as his rage grew.

The mental images his words created were so disturbing I began to fear him—how can you fear someone you love, a person more important than your own life? I needed to finish this and get out of here. Stefan's mood was hitting extremes and soon, not even I would be safe around him!

"I'm sorry, Stefan, but I just can't do this anymore. With everything that's going on, all the things you've been hiding from me, things that I had to find out from others—to force out of Damon and Caroline—people who shouldn't even be privy to the inner workings of our relationship, mind you…Our relationship has changed too much, and I fear we can never go back to the way it was."

I saw his eyes fill with unshed tears as his entire body started shaking.

If I could see the future and how this plays out  
I bet it's better than where we are now  
But after going through this  
It's easier to see the reason why

"I'm sorry! I really am… I love you but I think it would be better for the both of us to separate. You deserve happiness, Stefan. Like you said, being with a human for a vampire is unnatural. You should be with someone who understands what you go through daily and who you are not ashamed to be your real self with…I will always be there for you when you need me but I just…I can't do this. It's too much."

He sped to me and pushed me against a wall, blocking my escape. "Don't! Don't do this, Elena! I love you!" He cried, punching the wall and leaving a dent. His head fell on my left shoulder as I stood immobile. "I'm sorry…I'm so so so sorry." He hugged me to him, holding me tight. I put my arms around him, trying hard to relax and ignoring the urge to sprint outside. "I need you…" He whispered.

The kiss goodnight, it comes with me  
Both wrong and right, our memories (our memories)  
The whispering before we sleep,  
Just one more thing that you can't keep (you can't keep)

"I can't, Stefan. Please, just let me leave…" I replied, trying to push him off softly so as to not hurt his feelings more than I already did—it was an impossible feat but all I could do was try.

He straightened up, kissed me one last time and sped up to his bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

Broken-hearted, I whispered softly, knowing he would still hear me, "I'm sorry…I love you." I looked around the house one last time and left, taking a step towards a hopefully happier future.

It's no surprise. I won't be here tomorrow  
I can't believe that I stayed 'til today  
There's nothing here in this heart left to borrow  
There's nothing here in this soul left to save  
Don't be surprised when we hate this tomorrow  
God knows we tried to find an easier way  
Yeah you and I will be a tough act to follow  
But I know in time we'll find this was no surprise


End file.
